Phoenix
by raiTonight29
Summary: The other seigaku regulars were eyeing him anxiously. Almost expecting him to break down for once. Because, really, who wouldn’t? It was truly..un-normal. No one could have withstood that sort of loss. Even an overly stoic being like him. Angst.


Author's note: Hmmm… Well, hello to you, dear reader. This will serve as my first ever serious attempt at POT fanfiction seeing as I have been branching out in the Fullmetal Alchemist fandom lately. But recently, I have been watching Prince of Tennis and I got caught up in the suspense! And fell head over heels with Kunimitsu Tezuka… err… and well… maybe with Oshitari Yuushi as well… and then there's Choutaro Ootori… err… yeah… And Saeki Koujiro… lol…You get the point.

Anyway! Hehehe… please review! And constructive criticisms are received with love! But please go easy on me. It is my first POT fic, after all.

**Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of Tennis nor the characters therein. They all rightfully belong to Konomi**** Takeshi.**

**Phoenix**

**O:O:O:O:O:O**

**Phoenix**_ n_ _A mythological bird which, after its 500-year-long life, made a nest of spices, sang a dirge, flapped its wings to set fire to the pile, and burned itself to ashes. It dies in the fire but is reborn from its vestiges. _

**O:O:O:O:O:O**

Dark hazel eyes stared off at the wide tennis courts that spread out before him. But he did not see them nor the worried glances he was getting from his team, his vice captain and his coach.

He didn't need them and he practically didn't care.

He just stood there, appearing to be overseeing the practice but wasn't, because the other regulars kept glancing at him worriedly. Almost expecting him to break down for once.

Because, really, who wouldn't? It was truly… un-normal. No one could have withstood that sort of loss. Even an overly stoic being like him wouldn't have endured that kind of demise. But he did. Because he was Tezuka: Seigaku's pillar of support. He had to be calm and controlled for his team. _That_ was reason enough to be this cool and collected after a _loss_ that big.

He chuckled darkly within himself. Well, maybe the reason was because he felt empty. And he was obviously in some sort of shock. That was why he appeared to be calm. But he wasn't fooling anybody. They knew about the inner maelstrom of emotions that seethed within him. But he refused to let them break loose. He had to keep them locked up until they practically burst out and engulfed him with their wide gaping mouths.

But right now, he couldn't. He still had a team to guide up to the nationals. And that was more than enough incentive to keep him from breaking down.

"Tezuka…" came a worried greeting from somewhere beside him and he slowly turned his head towards the owner of that voice.

And there stood his vice captain with his doubles partner beside him gazing up at him worriedly.

"Oishi…" he greeted back blankly and averted his face again, pretending to be fascinated with a match from Kaidoh and Momoshiro who were practically eyeing him with dread and anxiety. Damn.

"Tezuka…" Oishi addressed firmly and he narrowed his eyes at the captain who refused to meet his gaze, "you really shouldn't be here. You need to rest, Tezuka."

"Oishi's right, Tezuka…" Eiji chimed in, "Yukinon wouldn't like to see you like this if she were still here."

"Eiji!" Oishi chided loudly and the redhead automatically covered his mouth with his hands and everyone within earshot of the conversation stopped to look at their captain in alarm.

"I-I-I'm sorry, Tezuka… I swear I didn't mean to- I… Uhm…" Eiji stuttered but stopped when he heard the captain sigh. But it was shaky and deep. And a dark shadow of pain swept through his eyes but it was gone as quickly as it appeared. Hence, no one saw it.

"No, it's fine, Eiji…" Tezuka said expressionlessly.

"No it's not, Tezuka. How can you be here when just yesterday Nakahara-san was…"

"I know, Oishi…" Tezuka cut him off just in time when a white pang of loss swept through his chest in one feet-staggering wave. He leveled a blank stare at his vice captain who leveled him with a determined stare of his own.

Tezuka let out a shaky breath he did not know he had been holding and said, "I think I'm in shock."

Oishi smiled despite himself and said, "We know, Tezuka. Why don't you sit down and I supervise the practice for a while?"

Tezuka was about to say no when he saw the dark orbs of his vice captain gleam dangerously at him and he nodded begrudgingly as he visibly stalked to one of the benches.

When he was out of earshot, Oishi turned to Eiji with a horrified expression, "Eiji, don't ever make me do that again. That was practically suicide."

"Mou, Oishi… you knew Tezuka was hurting. And you did the right thing."

"I did?" Oishi asked, his tone practically begging Eiji to convince him that what he did was indeed right because for a moment there he felt like he was feeding Tezuka to the wolves.

**O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_- O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O**

"_Nee, Kuni-chan?" a soft feminine voice chimed just above him and he slowly opened his hazel eyes to find his girlfriend's gentle face just above his. She had the most beautiful chest-length raven-colored hair that fell lightly on his shoulders as she leant over him like that and the most charming cerulean eyes that hovered just inches from his._

"_Am I heavy?" he whispered back, almost afraid to disrupt the serene stillness that bathed them._

_They were at the school's rooftop, enjoying the beautiful sunset together in silence. Maybe that was what made both of them get along quite well. They both loved silence. And that was also why they understood each other better than anybody else. Because they didn't need words. They would just look at each other and all the things that were to be said were passed through their minds like telegraphy. _

_But that didn't mean they didn't talk to each other. They did, in fact. Well, actually, they talked more than bask themselves in total silence. Even if said silence was comfortable enough to lie on. They couldn't just get enough of each other's company. It was almost as if each coming day made them even want to get to know the other more._

_They never grew tired of the other's presence, unlike most couples. Because they knew that this love was true. Their love was genuine and everlasting. Their love was indeed forever. Even if forever for them just wasn't really enough. Because, as obvious and cliché as it may sound, they loved each other. Far more greater than anything._

_The girl smiled, "Maa, I don't mind…" she replied as she finger-combed the unruly honey-brown locks that refused to lay down flat on the tennis captain's head no matter how hard she pushed or tried to smooth them out. _

_Tezuka Kunimitsu, who was later, dubbed _'Kuni-chan'_ by his girlfriend: Yukino Nakahara, lay on his back while his head was cradled on Yukino's lap. His left knee was pointed towards the sky while the right knee was to the east, both his legs bent. His hands subconsciously kept stroking the stray strands of black hair that either touched his face or his shoulders._

_Yes, this was love, he was sure of it. And it felt damn good to love and to be loved like this. Because for one, he could let go of his facades around her and let the walls around him plummet. Around her he was not Seigaku's captain. He was not Seigaku's pillar of support. He was Tezuka Kunimitsu. He was 'Kuni-chan', no matter how silly or how funny it sounded. But at least it made him _smile_ whenever he heard it roll out of Yukino's lips._

_Ah, yes… Smile. It had really been a great shock to everyone on his team to see him openly smile at someone. And they all hollered and cheered, screaming to the whole world that their captain was capable of such expression. _

_Tezuka inwardly grinned at the memory of his team's first encounter of Yukino. They had been together for a month when Yukino suddenly appeared at the tennis courts twenty minutes before the training ended. She stayed outside the courts, seeing as only members were allowed inside, just perpendicular to where Tezuka usually stood overseeing the practice._

_Tezuka slowly turned his head to the right to find her there and he allowed a small smile to grace his lips but it completely vanished before anyone saw it._

_And Yukino just stood there, watching the practice on that spot. And ever since that day she would always arrive at the courts 20 minutes before it ended and would stand at that particular spot everyday. With a clean white towel and a water bottle filled to the top. And maybe with a burger on one hand. Or maybe in her mouth._

_Everyday… 20 minutes before the practice ended, Tezuka would look up from observing the practice and would find her there on that very same spot. Always. Everytime he'd look up. She'd be there. Prompt and smiling. Never late. Never early. Always on time._

_And that alone gave Tezuka a strange feeling of reassurance._

_And they silently followed that routine. Because both were enjoying it and comfortable with it. And it made both of them reassured somehow. Because with that routine they'd both know that the other was safe._

_So they stuck to that simple routine. _

_And because of that routine, the team put two and two together and eventually found out that that mysterious girl that always came to the courts twenty minutes before the practice ended was their beloved captain's girlfriend._

_They had been guessing as to who the girl really was. And according to their data collector, she was in the same class with Tezuka and was not really a suffering-in-silence type. She was not that flashy or that drop-dead gorgeous but was pretty at her own right. She was petite but not klutzy and was most certainly not an introverted type; because she had decked Tezuka square on the face when he forgot to submit the requirements for the student council meeting because he was so immersed in training and tennis that he totally forgot about the deadline and they both scrambled about to finish the report on the last minute. She was kind and gentle. Because little kids would flock around her, tugging at her hands or skirt, just to ask her to tell them another story or teach them a new song._

_All things considered, she was a kind, lithe, spunky little black-haired girl who happened to be waiting just outside the courts. And the white towel and water bottle had not gone unnoticed. They had assumed that she was waiting for her boyfriend who was maybe one of the members of the club who were not regulars, seeing as all of the regulars –excluding Tezuka- denied that they had any romantic associations with the girl._

_And it had gone on for a couple of weeks and they all just settled with the conclusion that she was just a fangirl of maybe one of the regulars when they saw it happen right after practice that day._

_**Kikumaru was just hyper as usual when he jumped up and down beside Oishi. "Hoi, Hoi! Nyah! Practice today was fun, neh, Oishi?"**_

"_**Yup. But I got this funny feeling that the day isn't over yet."**_

"_**Huh? What do you mean, Oishi-senpai?" Momoshiro questioned from where he sat next to Echizen who was busy tying his shoelaces.**_

"_**I do not know, Momo. I feel something interesting's gonna happen soon. But I do not know what."**_

"_**Maa," the Seigaku tensai said thoughtfully, "we'll just see to that then. But right now, practice is over so I suggest we leave the courts right now or Tezuka'd make us run another ten laps."**_

"_**Fssshhh…"**_

"_**Yeah…"**_

"_**Hoi hoi!"**_

"_**Uisu…"**_

"_**Oh." **_

_**Everyone turned at the startled exclamation on the data collector's voice and they shuddered at the gleam that glinted off Inui's glasses but realized soon after a span of two seconds that the evil glint was not for them and they both followed his gaze to find the captain packing his things up hurriedly.**_

_**They all started to jump to their feet, afraid that they might get locked up at the courts overnight, and they scrambled to catch up with their captain who was completely oblivious of their presence or was completely ignoring them. Typical Tezuka.**_

_**They noticed that the black-haired girl was still there and she sauntered towards the gate with the towel and water bottle on her hand and with a burger on her mouth. Tezuka opened the gate slowly and closed the remaining paces in one big step when he leant down and took a bite out of the burger which was still on the girl's mouth and when he leant away there was a visible chunk of the food gone. He accepted the water bottle wordlessly as he chewed on his bite while the girl quietly finished what was left of her burger. And that was when they saw it.**_

_**They say Tezuka smile.**_

_**Everyone wanted to stop time in that very moment. They never saw him smile like that before. And everyone began to think that it would have been nice if Fuji had brought his camera with him right now.**_

_**They fell into stunned silence. And they could only watch at the pair who didn't seem to have noticed their frozen state yet. **_

"_**Mou, Tezuka!" Eiji hollered disapprovingly, "We didn't know you had a twin sister!"**_

_**At that Tezuka and Yukino could only turn and blink at his sudden outburst. But then Yukino looked up at Tezuka innocently and glared, "You have a twin sister and you didn't tell me?"**_

_**But then Tezuka Kunimitsu could only blink stupidly again. "I do?"**_

"_**Huh?" Eiji took a hesitant step forward, "You aren't the captain's twin sister?"**_

"_**Ah," Fuji exclaimed as realization dawned upon him, "It's you, Nakahara-san…"**_

"_**I'm supposed to be this airhead's twin sister?!" Yukino yelled heatedly at Eiji while she pointed a rude finger at her boyfriend.**_

"_**Airhead?" Kaidoh was taken aback. This girl actually called the captain an airhead? Wow. One of the suicidal ones, for sure. But then the captain merely stared at Eiji as if he had grown an extra head. And both heads were having a logical conversation.**_

_**Fuji chuckled, "Ah, please forgive Eiji. He doesn't seem to know your relationship with Tezuka yet."**_

"_**Huh?" Yukino muttered, "' doesn't seem to know your relationship with Tezuka yet?'" she repeated slowly. But then she snapped her head towards Tezuka's direction and proceeded to thwack his head with the white towel. "You didn't tell them that I was your girlfriend?"**_

_**Tezuka snapped out of his daze and turned to Yukino slowly, and then back to his team, and back to his girlfriend who had the very intention of murdering her boyfriend right then and there. "Oh, Sorry, Yuki… I forgot."**_

"_**YOU FORGOT?!?" Yuki, Inui, Kaidoh, Eiji, Oishi, and Momo exclaimed incredulously.**_

"_**Mada mada dane, buchou."**_

"_**Aah." Tezuka affirmed, "I'm sorry."**_

_**Yuki looked up at him and they shared a silent discussion before Yuki sighed long-sufferingly. "Mattaku." She muttered under her breath.**_

" _**Well, I guess it can't be helped. Well, I'm Yukino Nakahara; Kuni-chan's girlfriend. Pleased to meet you all."**_

"_**Eh?!" They exclaimed (excluding Fuji) incredulously as they stared at their captain as if another arm had protruded from his chest.**_

_**Their captain, their stoic and I-wouldn't-care-even-if-the-whole-world-went-to-hell captain actually got a girlfriend?! Wow… that was news. They thought he wouldn't get one until he graduated and got a job. He was always so single-minded that when he wanted to achieve something he'd tackle it head-on with no qualms and distractions. But this?! This was… they didn't know… so… mind-boggling- for the lack of a better word-. But it was actually nice to know that the captain was still giving time for himself. **_

_**They were happy for him. And this Yukino Nakahara seems to be a nice girl, they all thought. She kept Tezuka grounded but happy. They could see it from how he gazed at her. There was a subtle hint of love and admiration in those eyes that they failed to notice until now. They had seen him smile so openly at her. **_

_**They openly stared at the couple before them. Yuki was busy putting the white towel between the sweat-soaked shirt and his cool back while Tezuka held her bag and the water bottle in one hand. When Yuki was done she side-stepped and they saw how Tezuka adjusted his body to compliment hers. **_

_**They were so synchronized. When one moved the other would unconsciously adjust and reposition his or herself to accolade the other. Even if they did it subconsciously. And that was when they realized… **_

_**Tezuka had fallen. And had fallen HARD.**_

"_**About time you introduced yourself, Nakahara-san…" Fuji said when they both noticed their presence again.**_

"_**Huh." She grunted at him before she glowered up at Tezuka, "Wasureppoi." **_

_**Tezuka leveled a cool glare at her but to Yukino it was a childish glower. Her face immediately broke into a wide grin, "It IS true, y' know."**_

_**Tezuka stared down at her and she met him head-on. They exchanged a silent conversation again and it was now Tezuka's turn to sigh. "Fine. Everyone, Yuki said she'd like to know you all."**_

"_**Huh?" Momoshiro raised a skeptical eyebrow at his captain, "When? I didn't hear her say anything…"**_

"_**That is Momoshiro." Tezuka said, ignoring Momo's question as he proceeded to introduce the other members of his team. When that was done Eiji snapped out of his self-imposed daze and shot three feet up in the air yelling, "We must celebrate! The captain has a girlfriend!"**_

"_**Yeah!"**_

"_**What?"**_

"_**Huh?"**_

"_**C'mon!"**_

"_**Uisu! C'mon! To Taka-san's place!" **_

_Tezuka slowly smiled at the memory and it hadn't gone unnoticed by Yukino whose face was just above his._

"_What's that smile for, Kuni-chan?" Yukino questioned when she straightened up to look at the sky._

_Tezuka shook his head, "Just remembering the day when you met the team for the first time."_

_Yukino blushed, "Oh. THAT. Hmph. You're really the forgetful type, Kuni-chan. Did that blow to the head I gave you for forgetting the report for the student council really knock your brain up?"_

_Tezuka chuckled, " Maybe. I don't remember."_

_Yukino groaned, "You're hopeless."_

_Tezuka tilted his head backwards to look at Yukino, "I know. But I know you love me."_

_Yukino raised a skeptical brow at him, "Oh? Who said so?"_

_Tezuka frowned, "Hmmm… I don't know. But I think it was a spunky girl named Yukino Nakahara. But I could be wrong. I don't really remember."_

_Yuki chuckled, "Figured. But I think you got it right this time, Kuni-chan."_

_Tezuka sighed, "Good. Because half the city would be in ruins if I got that information wrong."_

_Yukino smiled, "You didn't. But for the record, I love you, Kuni-chan."_

"_And I you." Tezuka replied softly as Yuki leaned down to place a soft but lingering kiss upon his lips. _

**O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_- O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O**

"Okay, Everyone line up!" Oishi yelled and within 20 seconds he had everyone in 4 columns with the regulars in front. There was still 30 minutes left before afternoon practice was due to end and everyone noticed the not-so-unexpected change. Coach Ryuuzaki was also there between Tezuka and the vice captain. Her hand rested lightly on Tezuka's left elbow in what seemed to be a comforting gesture.

"Okay, everyone. Coach Ryuuzaki has something to tell everyone today. So please listen to her carefully."

"Uisu!" came the chorused reply.

The coach squeezed Tezuka's elbow briefly before letting go. "Tezuka, can I ask you a favor?" she turned to him to find his head down and that warranted a sharp zap of pain through her heart.

_Oh my god… what has 'that' done to you, Tezuka?_

Tezuka was still looking at the ground as if completely finding it interesting. But he didn't see anything. He was in a different world. A world where he didn't feel anything. He didn't feel hurt. He didn't feel happy either. Just nothingness. A cold sort of emptiness enveloped his heart in pitch black despair and shock. But still it was better than having your heart trampled over and over again by a herd of rhinoceroses. Big and fat rhinoceroses.

"_Tezuka?" _

Someone was calling him. But he felt fine right now. If he were to answer the pain would surely slam back to him in one painful wave. But surely he'd have to answer, right? It would be very impolite to ignore someone who was calling him. But, he didn't want to feel that pain anymore. Never, not anymore.

"_Tezuka!"_

"_Buchou!"_

"_Mou, Tezuka!"_

Tsk. So noisy. Why couldn't they just leave him alone? But… didn't those voices belong to people he knew? Weren't those the voices of his teammates? Was he still at practice? Oh crap. He had spaced out. Again. Now that wasn't a very good role model. What would Yuki say when she finds out you were not concentrating again? Oh double crap. Yuki. Wasn't it twenty minutes before the practice ended already?

"_Tezuka!"_

Tezuka looked up but his head turned to his right instinctively. Because he knew the girl he loved would be there just outside the tennis fence. But his heart twisted and coiled violently when he found empty space. Easily reminding him about what had happened the day before. The space where Yuki usually stood was empty.

Empty.

Like him.

He flinched away. The pain slamming into him in one agonizing blow. No… Yuki wasn't going to appear today. Or ever. Yuki wasn't going to smile at him anymore. Yuki will never be able to smile at him ever again.

His Yuki was gone.

Coach Ryuuzaki never knew anything that could have shattered her heart faster than seeing Tezuka flinching away like that. All he did was look at the spot where Yuki would stand everyday and that alone broke the barrier he had put up to prevent himself from letting human weakness show.

But no one could blame him. He was indeed just fifteen years old. But was already forced to overcome such a stage. Such terrible loss.

No one could blame him. Because he was –of course- still human. And humans were not immune from breaking down. They still showed weaknesses. Even the most collected soldier would break down after barely escaping hell's grasp in a pointless war. Much less a teenager. Even if the losses differed it would still make sense. Because a teenager should not and never have gone through 'that' kind of situation in the first place.

And then there were scars. Scars were always there to remind you of the past. Scars were always there to remind you that the past is real. And she knew that, sure, Tezuka didn't have any physical scars. But what about the emotional ones? Ones that cannot be seen? What if Tezuka'd never learn to fall in love again? What if he didn't want to fall in love again?

The team felt and thought the same way, too. Yuki had been everything to their captain. And to have that 'everything' taken away so suddenly and without any sort of warning was just too cruel. It was just too much.

"Tezuka…" Oishi breathed, his hand automatically on Tezuka's shoulder. And that alone anchored Tezuka back to reality.

He hesitantly looked up from where he was staring at that empty spot. He forced his heart to slow its frantic beating and to re-enforce his rapid pulse. Sweat beaded his forehead and he was visibly shaking. He closed his eyes and bit down on his lower lip hard enough to draw blood. But he welcomed the pain. Anything to distract him from the inner turmoil that writhed inside him.

He inhaled deeply and when he opened his eyes his features were schooled and his façade was intact again. The only thing that gave him away was his ragged breathing and the sweat that caked his forehead.

Oishi smiled reassuringly at him and he gently stirred Tezuka out of the courts. "C'mon, Tezuka. We better get that wound on your lip treated."

"Huh?" Tezuka uttered, tasting the copper tang of blood that oozed from his abused lower lip. But then he shrugged and followed Oishi anyway.

When they entered the building Ryuuzaki turned to the rest of the team. They all stared at the closed door where the object of their concern had disappeared into. Their worries were written clearly on each of their faces. They had been caught unawares. Just like their captain.

They hadn't expected him to have a sudden episode. And the episode had clearly freaked them out. To see their captain helplessly stare at the empty space was like having their hearts wrung up until it dried.

Ryuuzaki cleared her throat and everyone snapped out of their daze. She eyed them all with a level stare but yet not one of them even flinched. She smiled reassuringly at them but after that her face dropped and she faced them soberly.

"You all know why the captain is behaving the way he is, right?" she asked generally and she only got bowed heads as a response. They were completely mortified. It was just not the captain's loss but their loss as well. They had all come to like Yukino. And they had viewed her as a sister and friend. And she had been their captain's loved one. Of course they knew why the captain behaved the way he did a while ago.

"I would like to ask a favor from all of you." She began and with that she had everyone's undivided attention. They stared back at her as if to say, 'Anything.'

"I want all of you to take care of your captain. I want all of you to keep an eye on him at all times. He is unstable at the moment. With Yukino-chan… gone… someone has to keep watch of him. We are all aware of how great the loss is affecting Tezuka. He is visibly under a great kind of shock and I am not sure how long it shall last. He may recover tomorrow or next week, Maybe never. But please don't misunderstand his weakness. Even if he is a very great and talented tennis player and leader, he is still human. He's still a teenager. Like all of you.

"It may seem very weird to you to see him like that but there is nothing we can do about it. If ever he breaks down, don't panic. That's the beginning of overcoming the shock. If he starts yelling at you, which I think is highly unlikely, stay calm and comfort him. I tell you it's the beginning of overcoming shock.

"This is how Tezuka deals with losses. He stays quiet until the pressure and emotions he holds within practically explode. And if that time comes I want at least one of you, preferably the regulars, to be with him in that time of need. It is always good to have someone there to talk and vent all those frustrations to than a knife or gun. Yes, I know that may be inconceivable but losses like this could drive even the sanest persons into committing suicide. So please accompany him at all times. Can I count that on all of you?"

She was greeted by a strange swirl of tense silence. They already knew the gravity of the situation but then there was no hesitance in their stance. They all had their hands balled into tight fists and their eyes were determined.

"I'm in. I'll gladly keep an eye on the captain." Momoshiro said, his head up and resolute.

"There'd be a hundred percent chance that my conscience would haunt me tonight and forever if I don't watch over him, too." Inui said, pushing his glasses further up his nose with two fingers.

"Count me in. I'll watch Tezuka's back even if my life depended on it." Eiji said, his once cheerful face turned down into an aggressive frown.

"Fssshh…"

"I'll watch over the captain, too." Taka said soberly.

"I'll definitely be there for Tezuka. No matter what happens." Fuji vowed, his starling cerulean blue eyes sharp and serious.

"He's in capable hands, sensei." Ryoma said, his cat-like eyes narrowed dangerously. He respected the captain. They all did. He looked out for them all whether he admitted it or not. And now it was their turn to look out for him.

With the regulars accepting the task, the others began muttering promises to look after their captain… saying that he had been the best leader they had ever met and that they were never going to let anything bad happen to him.

With that Ryuuzaki seemed to be satisfied for she nodded once and said, "I would like to wish for your secrecy as well. This meeting should never reach the captain. Am I understood?"

"Hai!"

When they heard the building door groan their attention was then diverted to their captain and vice-captain who came from the school's clinic. When they entered the courts the whole club fell into anxious silence when they saw their captain's face.

It was pale. So very pale. It seemed that the only color in his face was the small cut on his lower lip that almost seemed to glow crimson, effectively contrasting against his very pale face. But other than that he seemed fine. But that was just for show. Inside, he was dealing with a storm. Everything inside him was in disarray.

"What happened, Oishi?" Ryuuzaki whispered when the vice captain furtively caught her eye.

"I don't know, sensei." He said and the other seniors gathered around them while Echizen, Momo and Kaidoh approached the captain.

"What do you mean, Oishi?" Ryuuzaki demanded as her eyes narrowed, not liking what she was going to hear next. When Oishi said he didn't know it was always no good.

"Tezuka… well, while we were heading to the clinic the blood that was on Tezuka's lower lip started dripping into his jersey… and well… when I pointed that out, he looked down and… well…he… he… He nearly passed out." Oishi stuttered out, not liking what he was recounting. Tezuka had stopped dead on his tracks and the next thing he knew he had him in his arms. And it had been a very severe blow to the heart.

"He nearly passed out?" Inui questioned, not quite getting it.

"He… His face just darkened all of a sudden and he stopped walking without warning. He tipped sideways and I caught him just in time before he hit the floor. When I asked him if he was okay he just repeatedly said that he was sorry. He kept saying 'I'm sorry… I'm sorry… Oh god, I'm so sorry…' and I had to actually shake him to snap him out of it. And when he did, his eyes… God, he's not there, sensei…"

Ryuuzaki took in a deep breath and let it out slowly as her eyes drifted to Tezuka who was talking to Momo and Kaidoh. Echizen was beside him and she saw the prodigy's hand on the captain's left elbow but he said nothing. He just listened to the three talking.

"It's okay, Oishi. What happened yesterday was a complete shock to Tezuka. And the blood he saw on his jersey must have triggered something that caused him to remember… that accident."

"But… why did he have to say 'I'm sorry' so many times? It was not like he was the one who… uhm… did that… he didn't want that to happen, right?" Eiji asked worriedly.

"It would seem so. But it _was_ Tezuka who did the first aiding. He probably couldn't get over the fact that he couldn't make Nakahara's situation better."

"No." Fuji interceded, "Tezuka could be sorry about that, sure. But I think what's really making him guilty is why he had let it happen in the first place."

"But Tezuka couldn't have known that… _'that…'_ would happen!" Eiji defended, "That was totally unexpected!"

"Eiji's right." Inui affirmed, "The probability of _that_ happening yesterday was merely .05%. No one could have known or predicted that _that_ would happen."

Taka sighed, "Yeah. But Tezuka wouldn't listen to any of us if we told him that, right?"

Fuji sighed, "That's for sure."

"But still, please keep an eye on him." Ryuuzaki said and the seniors glanced at their friend's direction.

"We will, Ryuuzaki-sensei. You can count on that."

**O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O-_- O_O-_-O_O-_-O_O**

**A/N:** I think I just killed myself. –nosebleeds- too much angst… for a POT fanfiction. But I couldn't help it! I've been doing angst for… half a year… so maybe… yeah. But anyways… please review? I mean, seriously. If you're reading this… please review? Because I don't really know if I should continue this … lil' phoenix-bunny… and I need the motivation. Your reviews would tell me if I should continue this or it would be better off in my Recycle Bin. Hehehe…

I'm counting on you!

**Please review!**


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